New D.C. mayor promises world-class city

Looks ahead to home rule

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The new mayor of Washington, D.C., said he is
committed to making the nation's capital a world-class city.
The mayor said customer service will be of utmost importance,
and managers will be held accountable for their actions.

Anthony Williams was sworn in as the fourth mayor of the
nation's capital. In his inaugural speech Saturday afternoon
at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center in
Washington, Williams announced his first and foremost
priority will be to fix the potholes in the city.

He got his loudest round of applause for his simple promise
to make sure all city phones are answered in a professional
and courteous manner. "We need to replace 'I don't know'
with 'I'll find out,'" he said.

Williams, 47, became a local favorite when as the chief
financial officer of the District of Columbia he balanced the
district's budget and delivered a surplus of $185 million in
fiscal year 1997. At the same time, he earned a fair
measure of respect from the Republican-dominated Congress as
well as the Clinton administration.

The Yale- and Harvard-educated mayor spoke passionately about
home rule.

"The center of democracy must and will reflect the core
values of democracy," he said. "And I promise that the
Williams administration will be a tireless, tireless champion
of that cause."

Currently, about half a million residents of the District of
Columbia have no voting representation in Congress.

Rep. Tom Davis III, R-Virginia, who supported Williams for mayor
and heads the House Subcommittee on Washington, D.C.,
was present at his inauguration. He told CNN he would
support legislation in Congress aimed at home rule for the
nation's capital.

Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman represented President
Clinton and his administration at the ceremony. Also present
were Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes, D-Maryland, the Rev. Jesse
Jackson, and Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents the district in
Congress.

Outgoing Mayor Marion Barry, who consistently fought with
Republicans for voting rights in Congress, urged district
residents to get behind Williams' administration and help
him succeed.